AI company Anthropic sues Trump administration seeking to undo ‘supply chain risk’ designation

Artificial intelligence company Anthropic is suing to stop the Trump administration from enforcing what it calls an “unlawful campaign of retaliation” over its refusal to allow unrestricted military use of its technology.

Anthropic asked federal courts on Monday to reverse the Pentagon’s decision last week to designate the artificial intelligence company a “ supply chain risk.” The company also seeks to undo President Donald Trump's order directing federal employees to stop using its AI chatbot Claude.

The legal challenge intensifies an unusually public dispute over how AI can be used in warfare and mass surveillance — one that has also dragged in Anthropic's tech industry rivals, particularly ChatGPT maker OpenAI, which made its own deal to work with the Pentagon just hours after the government punished Anthropic for its stance.

Anthropic filed two separate lawsuits Monday, one in California federal court and another in the federal appeals court in Washington, D.C., each challenging different aspects of the government's actions against the San Francisco-based company.

Stars hit Paris runways, but fall’s real trend was dressing for hard times – and real life

PARIS (AP) — The celebrities came first, as they always do at the Paris runways.

After Oprah Winfrey stole the show in the opening stretch of the nine-day week, Naomi Watts and Kai Schreiber were at Balenciaga. Rooney Mara, Diane Kruger, Alexa Chung, Elizabeth Olsen and Yseult turned up at Givenchy.

Sarah Paulson and Tracee Ellis Ross watched Celine. Chappell Roan was at Vivienne Westwood and then at McQueen, where Myha’la and Sophie Thatcher were also there. Chanel was still to come Monday, and Louis Vuitton capping the season Tuesday.

But this week was about more than the front row.

International Women’s Day spotlight on invisible work

As I watch my daughter celebrate another birthday, I find myself thinking about work in a different way.

Not the headlines about promotions, pay gaps or glass ceilings (although those still matter), but about the quiet work that keeps organizations running. The work that rarely shows up on a resumé, that does not earn awards or headlines, but without which everything else starts to crumble.

In HR, I see it all the time. There are women in every organization who keep the gears turning, often without recognition. They remember everyone’s birthdays and make sure the new hire feels welcomed. They notice when tensions are brewing between colleagues and take small steps to prevent confrontation. They keep institutional memory alive, quietly teaching the new generation how things work, sharing lessons learned. They fix problems before anyone even notices there was an issue.

This is invisible labour, and it is work. Emotional labour, relational labour, the work that goes into making a workplace humane, functional, and often even enjoyable. It does not show up in org charts. It is rarely celebrated at awards banquets. And yet, it is the glue that keeps workplaces together.

Pentagon’s chief tech officer says he clashed with AI company Anthropic over autonomous warfare

A top Pentagon official said Anthropic's dispute with the government over the use of its artificial intelligence technology in fully autonomous weapons came after a debate over how AI could be used in President Donald Trump's future Golden Dome missile defense program, which aims to put U.S. weapons in space.

U.S. Defense Undersecretary Emil Michael, the Pentagon's chief technology officer, said he came to view the AI company's ethical restrictions on the use of its chatbot Claude as an irrational obstacle as the U.S. military pursues giving greater autonomy to swarms of armed drones, underwater vehicles and other machines to compete with rivals like China that could do the same.

“I need a reliable, steady partner that gives me something, that’ll work with me on autonomous, because someday it’ll be real and we’re starting to see earlier versions of that," Michael said in a podcast aired Friday. "I need someone who’s not going to wig out in the middle.”

The comments came after the Pentagon formally designated San Francisco-based Anthropic a supply chain risk, cutting off its defense work using a rule designed to prevent foreign adversaries from harming national security systems.

VistaVision, a vintage format left for dead, is revived in ‘One Battle After Another’ and more

NEW YORK (AP) — When Paul Thomas Anderson told his cinematographer Michael Bauman that he wanted to shoot “One Battle After Another” on VistaVision — a large-scale film format born in the 1950s — he had some questions.

“Question one was: Is this even going to be reliable?” Bauman recalls.

For much of the past 60 years, the few remaining VistaVision cameras have been mostly collecting dust on shelves. Though the format was widely used in the 1950s, when Alfred Hitchcock shot “Vertigo” on it and Cecil B. DeMille used it for “The Ten Commandments,” VistaVision went dormant by the early 1960s.

Yet at the March 15 Academy Awards, a movie made largely with decades-old antique cameras is poised to win best picture. Even in 2026, when most films are shot digitally and AI has begun filtering into moviemaking, “One Battle After Another” has — with film equipment borrowed from collectors and museums — showed that a vintage, analog film system can still astonish moviegoers.

Spin Master sees loss, lower revenue in holiday quarter

TORONTO - Spin Master Corp.'s busiest time of year left the business with some holiday blues — a US$184.3 million loss.

The Toronto-based toy maker behind the Paw Patrol, Hatchimals and Melissa & Doug brands announced the fourth-quarter result Thursday, saying it compared with a profit of US$21.1 million or 20 cents US per diluted share a year earlier.

The company, which keeps its books in U.S. dollars, blamed the loss on a US$229.1-million non-cash impairment of goodwill and intangible assets and said it came as Spin Master capped "a challenging year for our U.S. toy sales."

"We navigated a difficult tariff macro environment and while we achieved many of our goals, our results did not meet our expectations we set at the beginning of the year," conceded CEO Cristina Miller on a call with analysts.

Many Canadian women seeing limited pathways to promotions, according to study results

Many younger women in Canadian workplaces are facing career stagnation, according to new data, with a vast majority reporting no clear path to advancement and the need for upskilling.

Data from Fora: Network For Change, a nonprofit group focused on gender equity in the workforce, found that 93 per cent of Canadian women and gender-marginalized workers between the ages of 18 and 29 see no clear pathways to a promotion at their workplace. Additionally, 85 per cent said they do not feel professionally challenged or stimulated.

“These are the individuals that are being significantly impacted by the state of the economy, particularly around underemployment,” said Emma Asiedu-Akrofi, CEO of Fora.

According to Fora, the findings show that workforce participation rates alone do not comprehensively detail the health of the labour market for younger workers. Other preliminary findings showed that respondents expressed desires for career-specific training and mentorship, as well as referral pathways, clear advancement structures and living wages.

OpenAI agrees to strengthen safeguards following B.C. mass shooting: minister

Federal Artificial Intelligence Minister Evan Solomon says the CEO of OpenAI has agreed to take several actions to bolster safety, including providing a report outlining the new systems the firm is developing to identify high-risk offenders and policy violators.

A statement from Solomon following his meeting Wednesday with Sam Altman says the minister will also ask the Canadian AI Safety Institute to examine the company's model and provide expert technical advice to his office.

The meeting follows the revelation that OpenAI banned the mass shooter in Tumbler Ridge, B.C., from using its ChatGPT chatbot last June due to worrisome interactions but did not alert law enforcement before the killings last month.

OpenAI has said new protocols would have resulted in Jesse Van Rootselaar's interactions being flagged to police, but Solomon says the tragedy "demands answers and stronger safeguards when powerful AI technologies are involved."

Province asks public to weigh in on rules for AI

The Manitoba government may consider setting age limits on using artificial intelligence or require private sector users to ask for consent before accessing residents’ data.

The province is launching a series of public consultations to explore changing the province’s data privacy laws so residents have enforceable rights, Innovation and New Technology Minister Mike Moroz said Wednesday in a news release.

The consultations will also look to establish clear rules for responsible AI use, particularly when the systems are designed to “make, recommend or influence decisions that affect a person’s rights, opportunities, benefits or access to essential services,” the release said.

The measures aim to address risks such as identity theft, deepfakes, child-targeted manipulation, biased algorithms and misuse of personal data in public and private systems.

Trial against Meta in New Mexico highlights video depositions by top executives

SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) — Prosecutors began presenting never-before-seen video depositions of Meta executives at a trial in New Mexico on Tuesday to bolster accusations that the social media conglomerate failed to disclose what it knows about harmful effects to children on its platforms, including Instagram.

New Mexico prosecutors are billing depositions from Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg and Instagram leader Adam Mosseri as centerpieces of the state's case against Meta, which owns Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp. Prosecutors have accused Meta of violating state consumer protection laws.

Prosecutors say the dangers of addiction to social media as well as child sexual exploitation on Meta's platforms weren’t properly addressed or disclosed by the company.

Meta attorney Kevin Huff pushed back on those assertions during opening statements on Feb. 9, highlighting efforts to weed out harmful content from its platforms while warning users that some content still gets through its safety net. He said Meta discloses the risks.

High-tech snowplows and AI help cities clean up from big storms

Residents of Syracuse, New York — America’s snowiest city — once barraged a service hotline with street neglect complaints during blizzards, even if plows had passed two hours earlier but the work was hidden by fresh snow.

Now public trust seems to be rising as Syracuse and other cities across the U.S. integrate upgrades such as video monitoring, GPS mapping and artificial intelligence into snow operations that once relied almost entirely on manual planning.

Syracuse was one of the first to revamp the way it deploys its snowplows, and complaint calls have dropped by 30% under the new system, said Conor Muldoon, the city’s chief innovation officer.

“People will look out their window and say, ‘Hey, you guys are doing a terrible job,’” Muldoon said. “And we can point to a public map and say, ‘Here’s all the breadcrumbs for when that plow was there.’”

Drone application big step in crop protection

It’s been a long time coming, but Health Canada is finally moving forward with a plan that would allow farmers to spray weeds using drones.

The department that oversees Canada’s Pest Management Regulatory Agency has launched a 30-day public consultation process on a proposal to regulate drone applications of pesticides similarly to manned aircraft applications.

The change, if approved, would allow manufacturers whose products are already approved for application by manned aircraft to add application by drones to their product labels without going through the costly and time-consuming process of applying for a label change.

Currently, there are no agricultural pesticide products registered for drone application largely because the current regulations require every product to go through a separate registration process providing supporting data.

Solomon to meet OpenAI CEO Altman in wake of mass killings in Tumbler Ridge, B.C.

VANCOUVER - Federal Artificial Intelligence Minister Evan Solomon will meet with OpenAI chief executive Sam Altman next week looking for a plan on how the company might prevent another tragedy like the mass killings in Tumbler Ridge, B.C.

Solomon said in a statement on Friday that he plans to talk to Altman "to seek further clarity and to ensure that the commitments made are translated into concrete action."

OpenAI had sent a letter to Solomon on Thursday, outlining its commitment to strengthen detection systems, to identify potential warning signals of serious violence, and better prevent attempts to evade safeguards.

Tumbler Ridge shooter Jesse Van Rootselaar had her ChatGPT account flagged internally and shut down by OpenAI last June, but the company did not notify police at the time. She went on to murder eight people on Feb. 10 in Tumbler Ridge, before killing herself.

Big dreams, cold reality: Buzz builds for Port of Churchill, but risks could outweigh rewards

The marine town of Churchill, cherished for its wildlife, landscapes and history, has recently taken on a new sense of national importance. Plans to expand Canada’s lone deepwater Arctic port on the shores of Hudson Bay have gained momentum — and investment — in the last year as the country looks north for solutions to an unprecedented conflict with its southern neighbour.

Premier Wab Kinew has pitched the Port of Churchill as an answer to Canada’s trade concerns, and a means of galvanizing both provincial and national economies.

Prime Minister Mark Carney has designated a plan to upgrade the port facilities as “transformative,” committing millions in federal dollars to the project and touting its merits in meetings with European trade partners.

In late January, Kinew announced the province was in talks with several companies, including at least one major energy company, about investing in port expansion.

When the internet extortionist comes calling

Everyone has, no doubt, heard of the prevalence of internet scams — the police warn you about them, your bank warns you regularly, and the list goes on.

Data centres and Manitoba: a cautionary tale

Alongside the rapidly expanding use of AI in everyday life, there’s a growing awareness that the technology also comes with extreme, big-picture threats to the things we need more: fresh water, affordable clean energy and a healthy information ecosystem.

Growing more complex by the day: How should journalists govern use of AI in their products?

Like so many sectors of the economy, the news industry is hurtling toward a future where artificial intelligence plays a major role — grappling with questions about how much the technology is used, what consumers should be told about it, whether anything can be done for the journalists who will be left behind.

These issues were on the minds of reporters for the independent outlet ProPublica as they walked picket lines earlier this month. They're inching toward a potential strike, in what is believed would be the first such job action in the news business where how to deal with AI is the chief sticking point.

Few expect this dispute will be the last.

AI has undeniably helped journalists, simplifying complex tasks and saving time, particularly with data-focused stories. News organizations are using it to help sift through the Epstein files. AI suggests headlines, summarizes stories. Transcription technology has largely eliminated the need for a human to type up interviews. These days, even a simple Google search frequently involves AI.

Young woman says she was on social media ‘all day long’ as a child in landmark addiction trial

LOS ANGELES (AP) — A young woman who is battling against social media giants took the stand Thursday to testify about her experience using the platforms as she was growing up, saying she was on social media “all day long” as a child.

The now 20-year-old, who has been identified in court documents as KGM, says her early use of social media addicted her to the technology and exacerbated depression and suicidal thoughts. Meta and YouTube are the two remaining defendants in the case, which TikTok and Snap have settled.

The case, along with two others, has been selected as a bellwether trial, meaning its outcome could impact how thousands of similar lawsuits against social media companies are likely to play out.

KGM, or Kaley, as her lawyers have called her during the trial, started using YouTube at age 6 and Instagram at age 9.

Burger King to bring AI-based voice coach to Canada later this year

When you stop at a Burger King later this year, staff may have an artificial intelligence-based coach in their ears.

Restaurant Brands International, the owner of the fast-food giant, revealed Thursday that it is bringing its new Patty tool to Canada in the second half of 2026.

Patty is a voice-based assistant which will be piped through the headsets Burger King staff wear, listening to their conversations and prodding them toward more attentive customer service and efficiency.

The tool will be able to remind employees how to make food orders and help them upsell customers.

New football chinstrap designed to lessen force of blows to facemask

Erin Hanson wants to make taking it on the chin in football much safer in Canada.

Guardian Sports officially launched the Guardian Flex chinstrap on Thursday for individual and team sale, with the CFL being among the leagues to have reviewed the item. The product has been engineered to reduce the impact of blows to the facemask.

According to the company, the chinstrap reduces Head Acceleration Response Metric (HARM) scores by up to 35 per cent and targets facemask impacts, which research suggests account for about half of all hits and are an area where traditional helmets underperform.

The chinstrap will be far less noticeable to fans than the Atlanta-based company’s Guardian Cap. Introduced 14 years ago, the soft padded shell fits over a football helmet and is secured by elastic straps attached to the facemask.

AI chatbots and teens — a sometimes deadly combination

As if there weren’t enough concerns about the changes artificial intelligence may bring in the future — the displacement of millions of workers, or the potential for AI to disconnect from its human managers and go its own way — there are clear and present dangers which AI companies must be forced to address now.

Tattoo removal business owners discover customers’ ink easier to erase than scammers’ damaging online reviews

The owners of two Winnipeg tattoo removal outlets say scammers are trying to extort them by posting negative Google reviews, then demanding payment to take them down.